Officer Sues NYPD Over Desk Duty for Shooting Man

A Brooklyn police officer is suing the New York Police Department for denying him overtime while he is relegated to desk duty after shooting and paralyzing an unarmed man, reports New York Daily News.

Officer Daniel Hernandez has been denied work as a street cop since he shot an unarmed man three years ago. In his complaint filed in the Brooklyn Federal Court, he claims that he “has suffered economically, humiliated, emotional distress and conscious pain and sufferings” because of the punishment.

Hernandez is suing for a reported $6 million in damages.

But Hernandez is facing his own legal predicament: Ahmed Evans, the unarmed suspect he shot and paralyzed in July 2008, is suing him.

The NYPD firearms discharge review board ruled that Hernandez violated guidelines for the use of deadly force when he shot Evans between the shoulder blades. Capt. Timothy Trainor concluded in the board’s report that Hernandez’s actions were taken “without having probable cause to believe that he must protect himself or another person from imminent death or serious physical injury.”

Evans was being pursued after violating a former girlfriend’s protection order.

“Because of his negligence and lack of training he shot a human being in the back and paralyzed him, and he says the police department is treating him unfairly?” said Evans’ lawyer, Kenneth Ramseur. “He’s somebody who shouldn't be a cop.”

Though Hernandez initially claimed he fired because he “was scared” when he thought he saw Evans reach for a weapon, the officer later admitted he did not see much of the scene because of poor lighting.

City lawyers are reviewing his suit, spokeswoman Elizabeth Thomas told the Daily News.

A Brooklyn police officer is suing the New York Police Department for denying him overtime while he is relegated to desk duty after shooting and paralyzing an unarmed man, reports New York Daily News.
Officer Daniel Hernandez has been denied work as a street cop since he...